People of color/non-white fans of sci-fi/fantasy/speculative fiction, please stand up!

This roll call from deadbrowalking is a response to yet another white SFF writer displaying ignorance of the long-standing presence of fans of color - not yet six months after RaceFail '09. You don't have to write anything lengthy or clever - this post is merely an attempt to get a (however incomplete) count of fans of color, after the nth time a white writer/reader said, "Wow, there's non-white people in SFF?"

And people wonder why we need to specify "'09" after "RaceFail" ... The ignorance is here, again, still.

I think this will be the last version. XD Maybe if other people find places for improvement, we can even get a whole new, different meme?

The list of contributors is: me, lunapome, laylah, ratzeo, puella_nerdii, maho_kiwi, niwatorimegami, and das_dingsi (IJ). In this version, the latest modifications are in bold.

( The questions )

For those who want it, here's an alternate version of the sex meme, hopefully more interesting and free of damaging assumptions. Co-written by me, lunapome, laylah, ratzeo, puella_nerdii, and maho_kiwi.

Please share as you see fit. If there are any glaring errors or problems, feel free to comment and I'll fix them.

Enjoy!

( The questions )

Vienna Teng will hold a concert at the Triple Door on Tuesday, April 21 for her new album, Inland Territory. Anyone want to come with me?

Yes, you! From the comfort of your computer chair!

1. Donate to Home Alive

Home Alive is a Seattle-based anti-violence organization that has presented community-based responses to violence since 1993. However, severe lack of funding has caused them to cut back on their work, and even lose their office space. They are very much in need of financial support right now.

( More details on the situation )

Please consider donating to help keep Home Alive functional. Every little bit helps.

2. Support the first Asian Women Blog Carnival

ciderpress is launching this carnival in April. The call for submissions has details and background, but ( here's the basic information: )

According to these criteria, every single one of you is eligible to contribute to this carnival! You have until April 3 - go for it!

x-posted to IJ

RENT is returning to Seattle!

With Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp playing Roger and Mark!!

I thought I was tired of RENT ... When I first saw that it would be playing here, I thought, "Eh, maybe." But - but - Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp! The original Roger and Mark!

(Granted, if you'd asked me to pick two members of the original Broadway cast to see performing live, I probably would've chosen Jesse L. Martin and Idina Menzel above these two ... but just barely.)

June 16-21, you guys! Who's coming with me?

Apropos of nothing (don't think I'm bucking trends here - a navel-gazing New Year's post will be on my regular journal soon), does anyone local have a use for small, rectangular metal tins?

I've ordered a lot of tea samples from Adagio over the years, and now I have a bunch of empty tins that I don't know what to do with. I have re-used some of them to store loose spices and other teas, but I still have over a dozen that are sitting empty in my cupboard. I was going to chuck them into recycling, but I figured they might be one of those odd, random objects that are very useful under the right circumstances.

Relevant info:

-I have over a dozen of these tins (twice as many if you count the ones I'm still in the process of using up), and will give as many of them to as many people as want them.
-They are rectangular and measure about 4 x 4 x 6 in centimeters and 1.5 x 1.5 x 2.5 in inches.
-I don't know exactly what kind of metal they're made of, but they are ferrous (which I found out when I tested to see if they're recyclable).
-A few of them stored fruity herbal teas, and the scent of the teas was strong enough that they still permeate the tins a bit. I wouldn't use these for storing other teas or spices, but they're still good for non-food items, like beads, needles, or small figures.

Let me know if you want any, and I'll bring them next time I see you.

x-posted

For anyone interested in what I would like for my birthday, or Christmas:

( 10 things, ranging from feasible to ridiculous )

To anyone who plans to make use of this list: thank you in advance. :D

By the way, I find other people's lists reeeeaaallly useful when Christmas shopping ... *hint*

x-posted to IJ

For those of you who, like me, need a spot of brightness in your day, I'm doing the "why I like you" meme here.

naamah_darling tells you exactly why it's an execrable rule, and exactly how you can help defeat it.

Please, please write an email or letter. Even if you just send an email saying nothing more than, "I oppose the proposed provider conscience regulation," that will tell them that one more person does not want this rule to go into effect.

You may not be as passionate about reproductive rights as me. You may not agree, in whole or in part, with my beliefs about birth control. But I hope you can see why it's frightening and infuriating that health care providers could be allowed to prevent adult, informed women from making legal choices about their own personal health.

You have less than a week left on the comment period. I don't care if you're normally not politically active. This is a simple thing to do, and it could be so important. Please write an email for the women you care about - yourself? A relative? Me?

x-posted to IJ

ratzeo's and my new apartment (♥♥♥) is in need of a vacuum cleaner. Since I'll be getting a cat at some point, I'd like to buy a vacuum that works well on pet hair, so I come to the communal expertise of the Internet. Do any cat owners out there have a recommendation for a reliable, not-horrendously-expensive machine? (My coworkers rave about the Dyson vacuum, but those things run upwards of $400, so ...)

x-posted to IJ

Just a reminder, my old position is now open. If you are interested in applying (it's a receptionist/office assistant position) drop me a line and I can give you info and advice. It's a decent job - not without its frustrations and limitations, as you can probably tell by my various complaints over the months - but overall a good place to be for at least a year or so. The position closes on Friday the 25th, so let me know ASAP if you want to apply.

x-posted to IJ

I have another question! But this one is less selfish.

Back at the beginning of summer, I set a goal for myself to start making regular monetary donations to worthy causes if I got a promotion/raise. And since I did, I want to make good on that goal. I have a few places in mind already, but I was hoping I could get some suggestions of other places to look into.

I would like to focus my attention on activist organizations that set anti-oppression as an overarching goal for their work - groups that seek to fix not only the symptoms (like providing shelter for people escaping abusive relationships or providing food for the homeless) but also the causes (like rape culture or institutionalized racism). Not that the former isn't vitally important - that would be asinine - but I really want to support organizations that are about dismantling unequal power relationships. CARA is a really excellent example of this strategy.

So if you have any suggestions, that would be great. Especially for places that I might overlook because of my focus on race and gender activism - maybe groups supporting trans youth, homeless families, etc. Give me a shake-up of my own privilege while we're at it, yeah?

x-posted to IJ

Seattle-area folks:

ratzeo and I are in search of a place to live come September. I've been searching for about a month now, mostly using craiglist and Rent.com, with no luck, and I'm approaching the hair-tearing frustration stage ... If anyone has advice about where to look or who to contact, it would be much appreciated.

If it helps, here's what we're looking for: a 2-bedroom apartment or house of reasonable rent (say, $1000ish, depending on the place), generally in the area bordered by Fremont-Green Lake-Wedgwood-Laurelhurst-Wallingford. I'd like it to be a place that allows cats, because I want to get one sometime after the move.

If you can help me find a place, I'll love you forever. (Barring that, if you have any recommendations of where to get boxes or hire movers, that would be great.)

Thanks!

x-posted to IJ

Opponents of same-sex marriage are seeking to reverse the California Supreme Court ruling in June of this year, which legalized same-sex marriage in that state. These forces want to put a constitutional amendment to vote in November that will take that right away.

livelongnmarry is an LJ community seeking to raise money for the efforts against this proposed amendment. Artists of all kinds are offering their services for bidding/purchasing, which you pay for by donating to same-sex marriage activist efforts.

For those (like me) who are not in fandom and do not wish to bid, we can just make donations directly to an organization. The community profile includes a list of suggested organizations. I picked Equality For All, which is a coalition of groups supporting gay and lesbian rights, as well as trans people, African Americans, and Asian Americans. You can donate directly through their website via credit card, for any amount. So even if you can't afford much, you can throw in what you can for a good cause.

(hat-tip: laylah)

The LJ Advisory Board election is being held today, and naamah_darling has posted important information about keeping a sexist, anti-Semitic, ableist, all-around asshole from winning.

Read her post, and then friendshipper's post for concise, informative explanations. And then vote. It's easy and fast, leads to a modicum of improvement in LJ-land, and also - may favorite part - lets you join in pissing off a trolling fuckwit.

InsaneJournal continues to be down, but should be restored today. In the meantime, here are the things getting me through the mid-week slump.

1. I made a giant batch of soup last night, using this super-easy but tasty recipe. (Just a note - I find it a little too salty, so you may want to add plain water.)

2. I made a semi-impulse buy and ordered a coffee maker and coffee grinder yesterday. I don't drink coffee on a regular basis, but I have been drinking it more lately; and this way I won't have to make a trip upstairs to the coffee stand every time.

3. Work on the Warmakers 4-koma continues. It's slow-going, because I'm so not good at humorous art ... but hey, it's a new skill to develop.

4. My BPAL order arrived! I still have to go pick it up from nekokoban, but ... my BPAL order arrived! :D Also, I'm wearing Bengal today, and while it's not my one of my favorites so far, it's still quite nice.

5. ratzeo is running game on Sunday!

[InsaneJournal is down and won't let me update, so I'm back to LJ for today.]

Today I found a link to Joss Whedon's commentary on the murder of Dua Khalil, a young woman who was killed almost exactly one year ago. Her death is yet another instance of the abuse of women being treated as a spectator sport - and in the year since, that has not changed. The reason Joss' entry surfaced again is that a charity anthology, Nothing But Red, was written to commemorate Khalil's murder and raise money for Equality Now, and it has just been released.

I never read Joss' entry last year, but I'm glad I found it now. If you are like me and also missed it, I want to bring this it to your attention now for two reasons: the first is that, as to be expected, Joss writes very eloquently about Khalil's death, as well as the pervasiveness of misogyny and sexual oppression.

The second reason is this quote:

"Women’s inferiority – in fact, their malevolence -- is as ingrained in American popular culture as it is anywhere they’re sporting burkhas. I find it in movies, I hear it in the jokes of colleagues, I see it plastered on billboards, and not just the ones for horror movies. Women are weak. Women are manipulative. Women are somehow morally unfinished."

I appreciate that Joss does not use this event as a call to arms for feminism that relies on perpetuating racist and imperialist power differences. In other words, he does not seek to protect women from misogyny by redirecting our malice against non-white men and non-U.S. cultures. Too often, the response - the feminist response, even - to news such as this is one of, "Look how awful they are," and "We should help those women over there." Villainizing minority men, infantilizing minority women, and ignoring the whole heap of steaming bullshit that is sexism in the United States.

I do not feel safe from misogyny for being born in the U.S. In fact, when my so-called "liberal" or "progressive" male peers decry "foreign" sexism but refuse to acknowledge the necessity of combatting or even acknowledging their own privilege - I don't feel very safe at all. Finding one more male ally who not only challenges his male privilege, but also refuses to soothe his ego by relying on his racial privilege, gives me some hope.